Shoe having integrally formed upper

ABSTRACT

A shoe is suitable to be made in cooperation with a last having a wear forming portion with a forming volume, and includes an upper unit having a bottom surface and a peripheral surface cooperatively defining a foot space that has a top open end for entry of the wear forming portion and that has a volume smaller than the forming volume of the wear forming portion by 5-10%. The upper unit has a toe stitching portion and a heel stitching portion located on the bottom surface of the upper unit. A sole is fixedly disposed on the bottom surface of the upper unit.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims priority to Taiwanese Patent Application No. 110204548, filed on Apr. 23, 2021.

FIELD

The disclosure relates to a shoe, more particularly to a shoe having an integrally formed upper.

BACKGROUND

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a conventional shoe is generally made by first sewing together an upper and a midsole cardboard 2 to form a three-dimensional upper structure 3, after which a last 4 is inserted into a foot space of the three-dimensional upper structure 3, and finally, a sole 4 is adhered to the three-dimensional upper structure 3, thereby forming the conventional shoe.

However, to sew together the upper 1 and the midsole cardboard 2 having different materials is labor-intensive. Further, the conventional shoe has many components, so that the manufacturing cost thereof is increased. Moreover, the foot space 301 has a volume exactly corresponding to the volume of the last 4 that is inserted therein. After the last 4 is pulled out from the upper, the volume of the three-dimensional upper structure 3 will remain corresponding to the size of the last 4 and will not shrink, so that, during wear of the conventional shoe, the conventional shoe does not cover well a foot of a user, and is uncomfortable to wear.

SUMMARY

Therefore, an object of the present disclosure is to provide a shoe having an integrally formed upper that can alleviate at least one of the drawbacks of the prior art.

Accordingly, a shoe of this disclosure is suitable to be made in cooperation with a last which has a wear forming portion with a forming volume. The shoe includes an upper unit and a sole.

The upper unit includes a bottom surface, and a peripheral surface connected to a periphery of the bottom surface and cooperating with the same to define a foot space. The foot space has a top open end for entry of the wear forming portion of the last into the foot space, and a volume smaller than the forming volume of the wear forming portion of the last by 5-10%. The upper unit is made from a cut piece which has a main body, and two wing portions symmetrically disposed on two opposite sides of the main body and integrally connected as one piece with the main body. The main body has a main body front convex edge, two symmetrical main body rear end mating edges, a main body rear concave edge between the main body rear end mating edges and opposite to the main body front convex edge, and two symmetrical main body rear lateral mating edges respectively connected to the main body rear end mating edges. Each wing portion has a wing lateral mating edge spaced apart from the main body and having a front end and a rear end, a wing front curved edge connected between the front end of the wing lateral mating edge and a corresponding one of two opposite ends of the main body front convex edge, and a wing rear curved edge connected between the rear end of the wing lateral mating edge and a corresponding one of the main body rear lateral mating edges. The main body rear end mating edges are abuttingly connected to each other by sewing. The wing lateral mating edges of the wing portions are abuttingly connected to each other by sewing. The wing front curved edges of the wing portions are abuttingly connected to the main body front convex edge by sewing. The wing rear curved edges of the wing portions are respectively and abuttingly connected to the main body rear lateral mating edges by sewing. The upper unit has a toe stitching portion extending along a junction of the main body front convex edge and the wing front curved edges, and a heel stitching portion extending along a junction of the main body rear lateral mating edges and the wing rear curved edges. The toe stitching portion and the heel stitching portion are located on the bottom surface of the upper unit. The sole is fixedly disposed on the bottom surface of the upper unit.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Other features and advantages of the disclosure will become apparent in the following detailed description of the embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings, of which:

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of an upper and a midsole cardboard of a conventional shoe and a last;

FIG. 2 is an assembled sectional view of the conventional shoe and the last;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a shoe according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of the first embodiment and a last;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a cut piece used for making an upper unit of the first embodiment;

FIG. 6 illustrates how the cut piece is folded to form the upper unit;

FIG. 7 illustrates how the cut piece is sewn to form the upper unit;

FIG. 8 is a bottom view of the upper unit;

FIG. 9 is an assembled sectional view of the first embodiment and a last;

FIG. 10 is a view similar to FIG. 9, but without the last;

FIG. 11 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view of the first embodiment; and

FIG. 12 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view of a shoe according to the second embodiment of this disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Before the present disclosure is described in greater detail with reference to the accompanying embodiments, it should be noted herein that like elements are denoted by the same reference numerals throughout the disclosure.

Referring to FIGS. 3 to 5, a shoe 100 according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure is suitable to be made in cooperation with a last 200. The last 200 has a wear forming portion 210. The wear forming portion 210 has a forming volume. The shoe 100 comprises an upper unit 10, a tightening unit 20, a sole 30, and an adhesive layer 40 (see FIG. 11).

The upper unit 10 includes a bottom surface 11 (see FIG. 8), and a peripheral surface 12 connected to a periphery of the bottom surface 11 and cooperating with the same to define a foot space 194. The foot space 194 has a top open end for entry of the wear forming portion 210 of the last 200 into the foot space 194. The foot space 194 has a volume smaller than the forming volume of the wear forming portion 210 of the last 200 by 5-10%. The upper unit 10 is made from a cut piece 17. The cut piece 17, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 11, includes an outer knitted fabric layer 171, a fabric lining layer 172, and an intermediate structure 173 connected between the outer knitted fabric layer 171 and the fabric lining layer 172. In this embodiment, the intermediate structure 173 is made of a foam material, and has a thickness of 3 to 10 mm.

Referring to FIGS. 6 and 7, in combination with FIG. 5, the cut piece 17 has a main body 18, and two wing portions 19 symmetrically disposed on two opposite sides of the main body 18 and integrally connected as one piece with the main body 18. The main body 18 has a main body front convex edge 181, two symmetrical main body rear end mating edges 182, a main body rear concave edge 183 between the main body rear end mating edges 182 and opposite to the main body front convex edge 181, and two symmetrical main body rear lateral mating edges 184 each of which is connected to one end of a respective one of the main body rear end mating edges 182 that is distal to the main body rear concave edge 183. Specifically, each main body rear end mating edge 182 is located between the main body rear concave edge 183 and a corresponding one of the main body rear lateral mating edges 184. Each of the main body front convex edge 181 and the main body rear concave edge 183 has two opposite ends.

Each wing portion 19 has a wing lateral mating edge 191 spaced apart from the main body 18 and having a front end and a rear end, a wing front curved edge 192 connected between the front end of the wing lateral mating edge 191 and a corresponding one of the opposite ends of the main body front convex edge 181, and a wing rear curved edge 193 connected between the rear end of the wing lateral mating edge 191 and a corresponding one of the main body rear lateral mating edges 184.

The main body rear end mating edges 182 are abuttingly connected to each other by sewing, the wing lateral mating edges 191 of the wing portions 19 are abuttingly connected to each other by sewing, the wing front curved edges 192 of the wing portions 19 are abuttingly connected to the main body front convex edge 181 by sewing, and the wing rear curved edges 193 of the wing portions 19 are respectively and abuttingly connected to the main body rear lateral mating edges 184 by sewing, thereby forming the upper unit 10.

Referring to FIG. 8, in combination with FIG. 7, the upper unit 10 has a toe stitching portion 13, a heel stitching portion 14, a bottom stitching portion 15, and a rear end stitching portion 16. The toe stitching portion 13, the heel stitching portion 14 and the bottom stitching portion 15 are located on the bottom surface 11 of the upper unit 10, while the rear end stitching portion 16 is located on a rear end of the peripheral surface 12 of the upper unit 10. The toe stitching portion 13 extends along a junction of the main body front convex edge 181 and the wing front curved edges 192. The heel stitching portion 14 extends along a junction of the main body rear lateral mating edges 184 and the wing rear curved edges 193. The bottom stitching portion 15 extends along a junction of the wing lateral mating edges 191. The rear end stitching portion 16 extends along a junction of the main body rear end mating edges 182. In this embodiment, each of the toe stitching portion 13, the heel stitching portion 14, the bottom stitching portion 15 and the rear end stitching portion 16 is formed by a single stitch, but is not limited thereto.

With reference to FIGS. 3 and 4, the tightening unit 20 includes two decorative tightening plates 21 symmetrically disposed on and abutting against left and right sides of the upper unit 10 and connected to the sole 30, and a tightening strap 22 interconnecting the decorative tightening plates 21. Each decorative tightening plate 21 has a bottom end portion 211 connected to the sole 30, and a top end portion 212 connected to the tightening strap 22. In this embodiment, the top end portion 212 is formed with a plurality of spaced-apart through holes 213. The tightening strap 22 is a shoelace that is removably threaded through the through holes 213 in the tightening plates 21.

Referring to FIGS. 10 and 11, the sole 30 is fixedly disposed on the bottom surface 11 of the upper unit 10. As such, the toe stitching portion 13, the heel stitching portion 14 and the bottom stitching portion 15 are concealed on the bottom surface 11, and are not exposed outside of the upper unit 10.

The adhesive layer 40 is fixedly connected between the bottom surface 11 of the upper unit 10 and a top surface of the sole 30, so that the upper unit 10 and the sole 30 are fixedly adhered to each other.

With reference to FIGS. 4 and 9 to 11, a method for making the shoe 100 is briefly described below, but is not limited thereto.

The first step is to adhere a knitted fabric to a foam sheet having a thickness of 3 to 10 mm, after which a lining fabric is adhered to the foam sheet opposite to the knitted fabric so as to form a fabric material (not shown) having a three-layer structure.

The second step is to cut the fabric material so as to obtain the cut piece 17 (see FIG. 5).

The third step is to sew the cut piece 210 into a three-dimensional upper unit 10.

The fourth step is to sleeve the upper unit 10 on the wear forming portion 210 of the last 200. At this time, the foot space 194 of the upper unit 10 is expanded by 5-10% to accommodate the wear forming portion 210 of the last 200.

The fifth step is to fix the decorative tightening plates 21 to the left and right sides of the upper unit 10.

The sixth step is to adhere the sole 30 to the bottom surface 11 of the upper unit 10.

Finally, the seventh step is to pull out the last 200 from the upper unit 10.

The making of the shoe 100 is thus completed.

It should be noted herein that, after the last 200 is pulled out from the upper unit 10, the foot space 194 of the upper unit 10 will elastically shrink back to its original volume to provide a good covering effect for the user's foot.

From the foregoing, the advantages of this disclosure can be summarized as follows:

1) The cut piece 17 is sewn to directly form the three-dimensional upper unit 10. In comparison with the prior art, the upper unit 10 of this disclosure does not need to be sewn with the midsole cardboard (see FIGS. 1 and 2) of the prior art, so that it is more labor-saving. Further, the number of components of this disclosure is minimized, so that the manufacturing cost thereof is reduced.

2) In comparison with the prior art, the foot space 194 of the upper unit 10 of this disclosure has a volume smaller than the forming volume of the wear forming portion 210 of the last 200 by 5-10%, so that, after the last 200 is pulled out from the upper unit 10, the foot space 194 of the upper unit will elastically shrink back to its original volume. As such, for users whose foot size corresponds to the size of the last 200, the shoe 100 of this disclosure can provide a good covering effect, as well as comfort during wear thereof.

3) In comparison with the prior art, a bottom structure (including a portion of the outer knitted fabric layer 171, a portion of the fabric lining layer 172 and a portion of the intermediate structure 173 of foam material) of the upper unit 10 is located under the foot of the user, and has a thickness that can provide good elasticity and comfort feeling during wear of the shoe 100 of this disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 12, the second embodiment of the shoe 100′ of the present disclosure is substantially similar to the first embodiment, and differs in that, in the second embodiment, the intermediate structure 173 of the cut piece 17 includes an outer fabric layer 174 fixedly connected to the outer knitted fabric layer 171, an inner fabric layer 175 fixedly connected to the fabric lining layer 172, and a foam layer 175 fixedly connected between the outer and inner fabric layers 174, 175.

The purpose and advantages of the first embodiment can be similarly achieved using the second embodiment.

In summary, the shoe 100, 100′ of this disclosure has an integrally formed upper unit 10, so that making of the shoe 100, 100′ is labor saving, thereby reducing the manufacturing cost thereof. Further, the shoe 100, 100′ has good covering and elasticity effect during wear thereof, and is also comfortable to wear. Therefore, the object of this disclosure can indeed be achieved.

In the description above, for the purposes of explanation, numerous specific details have been set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the embodiment. It will be apparent, however, to one skilled in the art, that one or more other embodiments may be practiced without some of these specific details. It should also be appreciated that reference throughout this specification to “one embodiment,” “an embodiment,” an embodiment with an indication of an ordinal number and so forth means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic may be included in the practice of the disclosure. It should be further appreciated that in the description, various features are sometimes grouped together in a single embodiment, figure, or description thereof for the purpose of streamlining the disclosure and aiding in the understanding of various inventive aspects, and that one or more features or specific details from one embodiment may be practiced together with one or more features or specific details from another embodiment, where appropriate, in the practice of the disclosure.

While the disclosure has been described in connection with what are considered the exemplary embodiments, it is understood that this disclosure is not limited to the disclosed embodiments but is intended to cover various arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and equivalent arrangements. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A shoe suitable to be made in cooperation with a last, the last having a wear forming portion which has a forming volume, said shoe comprising: an upper unit including a bottom surface, and a peripheral surface connected to a periphery of said bottom surface and cooperating with said bottom surface to define a foot space, said foot space having a top open end for entry of the wear forming portion of the last into said foot space, said foot space having a volume smaller than the forming volume of the wear forming portion of the last by 5-10%, said upper unit being made from a cut piece, said cut piece having a main body, and two wing portions symmetrically disposed on two opposite sides of said main body and integrally connected as one piece with said main body, said main body having a main body front convex edge, two symmetrical main body rear end mating edges, a main body rear concave edge between said main body rear end mating edges and opposite to said main body front convex edge, and two symmetrical main body rear lateral mating edges respectively connected to said main body rear end mating edges, each of said wing portions having a wing lateral mating edge spaced apart from said main body and having a front end and a rear end, a wing front curved edge connected between said front end of said wing lateral mating edge and a corresponding one of two opposite ends of said main body front convex edge, and a wing rear curved edge connected between said rear end of said wing lateral mating edge and a corresponding one of said main body rear lateral mating edges, said main body rear end mating edges being abuttingly connected to each other by sewing, said wing lateral mating edges of said wing portions being abuttingly connected to each other by sewing, said wing front curved edges of said wing portions being abuttingly connected to said main body front convex edge by sewing, said wing rear curved edges of said wing portions being respectively and abuttingly connected to said main body rear lateral mating edges by sewing, said upper unit having a toe stitching portion extending along a junction of said main body front convex edge and said wing front curved edges, and a heel stitching portion extending along a junction of said main body rear lateral mating edges and said wing rear curved edges, said toe stitching portion and said heel stitching portion being located on said bottom surface of said upper unit; and a sole fixedly disposed on said bottom surface of said upper unit.
 2. The shoe as claimed in claim 1, wherein said upper unit further has a bottom stitching portion extending along a junction of said wing lateral mating edges and located on said bottom surface of said upper unit, and a rear end stitching portion extending along a junction of said main body rear end mating edges and located on a rear end of said peripheral surface of said upper unit.
 3. The shoe as claimed in claim 1, wherein said cut piece includes an outer knitted fabric layer, a fabric lining layer, and an intermediate structure connected between said outer knitted fabric layer and said fabric lining layer.
 4. The shoe as claimed in claim 3, wherein said intermediate structure is made of a foam material.
 5. The shoe as claimed in claim 3, wherein said intermediate structure includes an outer fabric layer fixedly connected to said outer knitted fabric layer, an inner fabric layer fixedly connected to said fabric lining layer, and a foam layer fixedly connected between said outer fabric layer and said inner fabric layer.
 6. The shoe as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a tightening unit which includes two decorative tightening plates symmetrically disposed on and abutting against left and right sides of said upper unit and connected to said sole, and at least one tightening strap interconnecting said decorative tightening plates, each of said decorative tightening plates having a bottom end portion connected to said sole, and a top end portion connected to said at least one tightening strap.
 7. The shoe as claimed in claim 6, wherein said top end portion is formed with a plurality of spaced-apart through holes, and said at least one tightening strap is a shoelace that is removably threaded through said through holes in said tightening plates.
 8. The shoe as claimed in claim 1, further comprising an adhesive layer fixedly connected between said bottom surface of said upper unit and a top surface of said sole. 